Rahab רָחָב
📋
Gentile Convert | Ancestor of David
Profile Depth:
Moderate: 2 chapters
Overview
Tags: Gentile Convert Faith Hero Jericho Covenant Inclusion Messianic Lineage
Summary: Rahab was a Canaanite woman living in Jericho who recognized the God of Israel as the true God and risked her life to protect two Israelite spies. Her act of faith secured salvation for her entire household and resulted in her integration into Israel, ultimately placing her in the genealogy of King David and Jesus Christ.
Theological Significance: Rahab demonstrates that salvation comes through faith regardless of ethnicity or past, prefiguring the inclusion of Gentiles in God's covenant people. Her story illustrates how God's grace transforms outsiders into insiders and uses unlikely people for redemptive purposes.
Narrative Journey
Receiving the Spies (Joshua 2:1-7):
Two Israelite spies enter Jericho and lodge at Rahab's house. When the king's men come searching, she hides the spies on her roof under stalks of flax and misdirects the pursuers, demonstrating both courage and strategic thinking.
Confession of Faith (Joshua 2:8-11):
Rahab articulates a remarkable theological confession, acknowledging that Yahweh "is God in heaven above and on earth below." She reveals her awareness of the Exodus and God's mighty acts, showing that God's reputation had reached even Canaanite hearts.
Covenant Negotiation (Joshua 2:12-21):
Rahab secures an oath from the spies to spare her family, receiving the scarlet cord as a sign of protection. This covenant-making demonstrates her understanding of Israel's God as one who keeps promises and shows chesed (covenant loyalty).
Salvation at Jericho's Fall (Joshua 6:17-25):
When Jericho falls, Joshua honors the oath made to Rahab. She and her family are brought out safely and eventually integrated into Israel. The text emphasizes that "she has lived in Israel ever since," marking complete inclusion.
Pattern Recognition: Rahab's journey follows a conversion pattern: hearing about God's acts, believing in His supremacy, acting on faith despite personal risk, and receiving salvation that extends to her household—a pattern that anticipates New Testament household conversions.
Literary Context & Structure
📚 Position in Book
Opens the conquest narrative, establishing themes of faith, inclusion, and divine sovereignty that run throughout Joshua.
🔄 Literary Patterns
Scarlet cord echoes Passover blood; hiding on the roof parallels Moses in the basket; confession formula matches Deuteronomy 4:39.
🎭 Character Function
Foil to Achan (Josh 7): outsider who acts faithfully vs. insider who acts faithlessly; she saves while he destroys.
✍️ Narrative Techniques
Direct speech dominates, giving Rahab agency; her theological insight exceeds that of many Israelites; irony of a prostitute teaching about God.
Major Theological Themes
🌱 Faith Over Ethnicity
Demonstrates that covenant membership depends on faith, not genealogy, prefiguring Paul's theology in Romans.
⚖️ Divine Reversal
God elevates the marginalized: a Canaanite prostitute becomes an Israelite matriarch.
💡 Covenant Inclusion
Shows God's covenant as open to all who turn to Him in faith, not limited by social or ethnic boundaries.
🔥 Salvation by Faith
Her deliverance comes through believing and acting on God's reputation, not through works of the law.
🕊️ Household Salvation
Her faith secures deliverance for her entire family, establishing a biblical pattern of household faith.
👑 Redemptive Purpose
God transforms her past into purpose, making her part of the messianic lineage.
Ancient Near Eastern Context & Biblical Distinctives
📜 ANE Parallels
- Innkeepers/Prostitutes: Often operated on city walls, serving as information brokers for travelers
- City Destruction Accounts: Total destruction was common rhetoric; survivors typically enslaved
- Scarlet Symbols: Red tokens used for protection in various ANE rituals and treaties
⚡ Biblical Distinctives
- Full Integration: Unlike ANE practice, Rahab receives complete inclusion, not servitude
- Faith Recognition: Her confession of monotheism distinguishes her from polytheistic context
- Covenant Ethics: The spies' oath-keeping contrasts with typical ancient warfare deception
Creation, Fall & Redemption Patterns
🌍 Eden Echoes / Creation Themes
- New creation through faith—transformation from death to life
- Imago Dei recognized despite social status
- Restoration to covenant community mirrors Eden fellowship
🍎 Fall Patterns
- Living in corrupted Canaanite culture
- Deception used for righteous purposes—reversal of serpent's deception
- City under judgment parallels post-Fall expulsion
Redemption Through Crisis:
God brings redemption through Jericho's judgment, saving those who turn to Him while executing justice on unrepentant evil. Rahab's salvation demonstrates God's desire to rescue rather than destroy, offering grace even in judgment.
Messianic Trajectory & New Testament Connections
Gentile Inclusion Pattern:
Rahab establishes the pattern of Gentile inclusion that culminates in the Great Commission and Paul's ministry to the nations.
Scarlet Thread to Blood of Christ:
The scarlet cord protecting her household prefigures salvation through Christ's blood, protecting all who shelter under it.
Genealogical Significance:
Matthew 1:5 places Rahab in Jesus' genealogy, showing God's grace to outsiders in the Messiah's own lineage.
📖 OT Connections
- Exodus 12: Scarlet cord parallels Passover blood
- Ruth: Another foreign woman integrated into messianic line
- Isaiah 56:3-8: Foreigners joining themselves to the Lord
✨ NT Fulfillment
- Hebrews 11:31: Faith Hall of Fame inclusion
- James 2:25: Example of living faith
- Matthew 1:5: Ancestor of Jesus Christ
Old Testament Intertext
| Reference | Connection & Significance |
|---|---|
| Exodus 1:17-21 | Hebrew midwives' deception to save life parallels Rahab's righteous lie |
| Leviticus 14:4-7 | Scarlet thread in cleansing rituals connects to Rahab's scarlet cord |
| Ruth 1:16-17 | Ruth's confession parallels Rahab's—foreign women choosing Israel's God |
New Testament Intertext
| Reference | Connection & Significance |
|---|---|
| Hebrews 11:31 | Rahab's faith prevented destruction—model of saving faith |
| James 2:25 | Rahab's works demonstrated living faith—justified by actions |
| Matthew 21:31-32 | Prostitutes entering kingdom ahead of religious leaders echoes Rahab |
Related Profiles & Studies
→ Rahab's Mother (Family Member) → Tamar (Fellow Ancestor in Matthew 1) → Ruth (Fellow Gentile Convert) → See All Women in the Bible
Application & Reflection
Personal
- God accepts all who turn to Him regardless of past
- Faith requires action and often involves risk
- Our backgrounds don't determine our destiny in God
Community
- Churches must welcome and fully integrate outsiders
- God uses unlikely people for kingdom purposes
- Household faith impacts generations
Contemporary Challenge: Rahab's story challenges religious exclusivity and social prejudices, calling believers to recognize faith wherever it appears and to embrace those whom society marginalizes, seeing them as potential heroes of faith.
Study Questions
- How does Rahab's story demonstrate God's sovereignty in using outsiders for His purposes?
- What can we learn about the relationship between faith and action from Rahab's example?
- How does Rahab's inclusion in Israel challenge our understanding of God's people?
- What parallels exist between Rahab's scarlet cord and Christ's blood?
- How does Rahab's story encourage those who feel their past disqualifies them from God's purposes?
- What does Rahab's confession teach us about natural revelation and God's witness to all nations?
- How might Rahab's story have encouraged Gentile believers in the early church?
- What aspects of Rahab's faith challenge modern assumptions about conversion and transformation?
Bibliography & Sources
Academic references for the study of Rahab in Joshua 2 and 6
Bibliography & Sources
Academic references for the study of Rahab in Joshua 2 and 6
Primary Sources
Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1997.
All Sections
Joshua 2, 6 for Hebrew text and textual variants
Major Commentaries
Butler, Trent C. Joshua. Word Biblical Commentary. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2014.
Narrative Journey, Themes, Biblical Theology
Theological interpretation of Rahab's faith and covenant inclusion
Hess, Richard S. Joshua: An Introduction and Commentary. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2008.
ANE Context, Literary Analysis
Archaeological context of Jericho and literary patterns
Hawk, L. Daniel. Joshua. Berit Olam. Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2000.
Literary Context, Themes
Literary artistry and narrative theology
Specialized Studies
Bird, Phyllis A. "The Harlot as Heroine: Narrative Art and Social Presupposition in Three Old Testament Texts." Semeia 46 (1989): 119-139.
Literary Analysis, ANE Context
Social status and narrative function of prostitutes in ancient texts
Jackson, Melissa A. Comedy and Feminist Interpretation of the Hebrew Bible: A Subversive Collaboration. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012.
Literary Context, Application
Rahab as subversive character, irony and reversal
Theological Studies
Firth, David G., and Philip S. Johnston, eds. Interpreting Old Testament Theology: Prospects and Challenges. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2021.
Biblical Theology, Messianic Trajectory
Rahab in biblical theological framework
Bauckham, Richard. Gospel Women: Studies of the Named Women in the Gospels. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002.
Messianic Trajectory
Rahab in Matthew's genealogy, pp. 17-46
Reference Works
Brown, Francis, S.R. Driver, and Charles A. Briggs. The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon. Peabody: Hendrickson, 2014.
Etymology
Hebrew root analysis of רחב
VanGemeren, Willem A., ed. New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis. 5 vols. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1997.
Word Studies, Themes
Theological lexical analysis of key terms
Note on Sources:
This bibliography focuses on sources specific to Rahab's narrative in Joshua 2 and 6, with attention to her literary function, theological significance, and New Testament reception.